If you had told someone 30 years ago that you’d be able to buy nearly anything you could think of by touching a couple of buttons on your phone, they probably wouldn’t have believed you.
E-commerce technology has fundamentally shifted the way we shop. It really is unbelievable how much easier computers and smartphones have made shopping and selling. In 2024, U.S. retail e-commerce revenue from the sale of fashion apparel, footwear, and accessories is set to reach over 145 billion U.S. dollars.
With such a competitive landscape for existing and startup e-commerce businesses, it’s important to stay on top of online trends. Here are the technology and e-commerce trends to pay attention in the fashion and apparel industry, as well as ways to decide which trends will benefit your business.
M-commerce shopping happens via smart devices and is becoming one of the most lucrative e-commerce niches. Because the majority of customers who shop online prefer to do it from their mobile devices, with 81% of fashion and apparel shoppers used their mobile devices for transactions, mobile marketing is one of the most significant redefining aspects of e-commerce.
E-commerce should take advantage of this niche by optimizing the mobile user experience (UX). Poor mobile execution or having no mobile version of your website at all will cause companies to lose out in the market.
Big or small, you can use mobile apps to advance the course of your business. You can provide a seamless experience to your customers by making use of excellent apps. Always use apps that make their shopping easier and even fun.
Helpful Tip: Use a mobile friendly “responsive” design for your website. Not only will this make it easier for your customers to navigate your website but a good mobile experience also helps with your Google Search rankings.
Inventory management has developed over time to support manufacturing, retail, wholesale, and multichannel businesses. Today, we live in a specialization era where Supply Chain Management (SCM) is available as a service.
E-commerce has made the role of inventory management software even more critical. This technology integrates with e-commerce platforms like Shopify and marketplaces Amazon as well as fosters the development of online portals for various business models, including B2B, B2C, C2C, and even C2B-like models. By streamlining operations before and after production, IMS solutions help alleviate pressure on today’s complex supply chains.
Other IMS-related technologies include:
Helpful Tip: When searching for an Inventory Management solution, make sure it integrates with the software and marketplaces critical to your business and includes any unique feature you need such as Nested BOMs or Disassembly.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere, and e-commerce is no exception as sellers strive to power their supply chains and give their shoppers personalized experiences. Personalization technologies are highly dependent on AI.
E-commerce is experiencing a surge in the use of real-time and automated chatbots powered by AI. These chatbots can intelligently respond to customer inquiries, offering a convenient and personalized way to get support.
AI can be used in nearly every aspect of an e-commerce business. Many businesses opt to utilize smart warehouses, which use AI and other tech to completely automate their storage facilities and most processes.
Helpful Tip: AI for something like forecasting is only as good as the data it has to use. This means that having an inventory management system with sales and inventory data across all your warehouses and sales channels will enable the most accurate forecasting.
You can also use AI to implement chatbots that will automatically respond to customer requests and direct them to the answers they need. This is a valuable tool for e-commerce as it provides an instant self-service option for customer support.
Chatbots are also a valuable sales tool in e-commerce, as they can help funnel potential customers into the sales pipeline. This is known as conversational commerce.
For instances when the chatbot isn’t enough, live chat is another valuable feature. Customers can speak directly with a customer service representative over chat, getting answers they need without needing to call or email a business. Businesses that don’t employ these e-commerce technologies may lose customers to competitors who do offer this type of support.
Helpful Tip: When implementing a chatbot, make it approachable by giving it a personality, using clear language and avoiding business jargon, and personalizing the chat by providing relevant content and even greeting the customer by name (if they are a logged in customer for instance).
Augmented and virtual reality can help increase sales and improve the customer experience across a range of e-commerce businesses. Many fashion brands are using AR to allow people to virtually try on clothes or are even creating a virtual fitting room.
While VR and AR may not work for every brand, they can be great tools for creating an interactive customer experience. Not only does it improve UX, but research also shows that the use of VR and AR increases purchase intent by as much as 53%.
Helpful Tip: If you are thinking about adding AR or VR, ask this important question: Does it get past novelty and entertainment to provide value to customers and firms? If so, it can be a great addition to your business, but if not, it likely isn’t worth the investment.
Electronic data interchange (EDI) is technology that allows e-commerce businesses to exchange information that was historically shared on paper.
For example, e-commerce shoppers and merchants can automatically place orders, generate invoices, and track the entire shipping process.
EDI streamlines online shopping by ensuring smooth communication between businesses, leading to a stress-free experience for shoppers when ordering and receiving goods.
Helpful Tip: Did you know that Cin7 Omni has built in EDI connections to the largest network of EDI retailers? This means you don’t need to worry about adding 3rd party software in order to connect your inventory management solution to retailers through EDI.
EFT technology has seen recent improvements, such as encryption-like technologies that enhance its security. EFTs have reduced our over-reliance on physical banks.
Direct debit, withdrawals and deposits for payments, e-bill payments, and instant payments are some e-payment options. They determine our concurrent financial activities.
With the popularity of apps such as Cash App, Venmo, and Zelle, consumers appreciate the convenience of EFTs, making this e-commerce technology a valuable consideration for any business, especially startups.
Helpful Tip: You may already know that EFT payments typically result in significantly less cost for your business than credit card transactions but have you thought about how to encourage this kind of payment. Consider making it prominently displayed that you accept different types of EFT payments like Venmo or Zelle or you can even incentivise customers to use a debit card vs a credit card.
There is a lot of controversy around blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Blockchain technology is gaining trust as a method for online payments and for its concept of a distributed genuine ledger of all digital transactions.
Blockchain ensures transparency, security, and decentralization, which makes it an attractive option for accepting online payments. Payments and exchanges with fiat currencies take more time and are costlier, which is why cryptocurrencies are becoming popular. You can make shipping “smarter” by providing encryption in deliveries using blockchain.
The future of the e-commerce marketplace is blockchain-driven, which economists expect to transform the industry.
Building trust is essential for e-commerce businesses. Investing in data privacy and security shows customers you take their information seriously, keeping them confident and loyal.
Data privacy and security play a role in some of the other e-commerce technologies we’ve already discussed, such as VR, AR, and blockchain. This can also include safeguards such as biometrics, multifactor verification, and tokenization.
Helpful Tip: Using a cloud based inventory management software instead of an on premises solution shifts a lot of the security burden from you to the vendor. These vendors are usually more security savvy than an SMB but make sure to look into your provider’s security incident history. In every US state businesses are required to tell customers if they are breached and this information can usually be found with a quick Google search if you are not yet a customer.
Voice-powered shopping, or v-commerce, is the next wave of e-commerce. Voice search gives customers a seamless, hands-free purchasing experience through voice commands on their smart devices.
Beyond convenience, v-commerce offers accessibility. Voice commands provide an alternative way to interact for those unable to use websites or apps.
Helpful Tip: Make sure you’re considering voice search when optimizing your website for search. Check out this blog for tips on voice search optimization.
While it’s important to stay on top of trends, not every single one will work well for every business. Of course, what makes sense for you will depend mainly on what product or service you sell and your resources. The other factors to consider are:
E-commerce technology should be something that works for your business and your customers, but you don’t have to figure it all out on your own.
Cin7 understands that tracking orders, inventory levels, sales, and shipments are critical business phases. Our inventory management software helps your online business eliminate overstocking and stock outages so you can stay on top of customer needs in the demanding e-commerce space.
Book a demo with Cin7 and see how we can help support your business in the future of e-commerce.
Discover answers to the top frequently asked questions about e-commerce technology and trends.
E-commerce, or electronic commerce, is the process of buying and selling goods or services over the internet. It encompasses everything from browsing online stores to securely transferring payment and data to complete the transaction. Often referred to as the sale of physical products online, e-commerce also describes any commercial transaction facilitated via the internet.
There are mainly four types of e-commerce models that describe almost every transaction taking place between consumers and businesses:
AI has numerous uses in e-commerce. It can be used to help retarget potential customers, create marketing campaigns, service customers with chatbots, automate accounting, and create an overall better user experience.
Consider subscribing to e-commerce-focused newsletters or listening to relevant podcasts. You can also join online or local business groups to get support and share ideas.
